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Home • News

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students

As we celebrate "College Signing Day" with Michelle Obama, we're taking a look back at the Black scholars who sought out education by creating their own opportunities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities—paving the way for us today.
By Essence · Updated October 27, 2020
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01
Spelman College

Spelman College graduate June Dobbs with her family in 1948 in Atlanta. 

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Francis Miller/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
02
Morehouse College

A student rally at Morehouse College in Atlanta in 1960.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Donald Uhrbrock/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
03
Morehouse College

Students watching Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral in 1968 at Morehouse College in Atlanta.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Robert Abbott Sengstacke / Getty Images
04
Howard University

Students lounge on the lawn of Howard University’s campus in 1946 in Washington D.C.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
05
Howard University

Coeds on campus at Howard University in Washington D.C in 1946.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
06
Howard University

Law graduating class in formal attire on the steps of Howard University, Washington DC in the early 1900s.  

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images
07
Howard University

Two students filling prescriptions in School of Pharmacy at Howard University in Washtington D.C in 1946.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Alfred Eisenstaedt/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
08
Howard University

Students performing on string instruments in music class at Howard University in Washtington D.C in 1946.  

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Alfred Eisenstaedt/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
09
Howard University

Editorial staff of the Hill Top, the student paper at Howard University in Washington D.C. in 1946.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Alfred Eisenstaedt/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
10
Howard University

Students studying in Reading Room of Howard University Library in Washtington D.C. in 1946.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Alfred Eisenstaedt/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
11
Tuskegee University

A student at Tuskegee University in Alabama learns to print a newspaper page in the Institute’s printing works in 1955. Booker T Washington, an early principal of Tuskegee developed the university as a place of education for the black population.  

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Bernd Lohse/Three Lions/Getty Images
12
Tuskegee University

 A mechanical drawing class at the Tuskegee Institute in 1902.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images
13
Tuskegee University

Junior Class in Farm Management at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1940.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
PhotoQuest/Getty Images
14
Atlanta University (Clark Atlanta University)

Civil Rights Leaders with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Atlanta University (now known as Clark Atlanta University) in 1960.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Howard Sochurek
15
Atlanta University (Clark Atlanta University)

Civil Rights student leaders from all over the South at Atlanta University (now known as Clark Atlanta University) to meet with Dr. Martin Luther King on desegregation strategy and organizing sit-ins, in 1960.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Howard Sochurek
16
Claflin University

Football Team at Claflin University in 1899 in South Carolina.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Buyenlarge/Getty Images
17
Claflin University

Manual training shop at Claflin University, Orangeburg, S.C. in 1899.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Buyenlarge/Getty Images
18
Fisk University

Junior preparatory class of Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee in 1899.  

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Buyenlarge/Getty Images
19
Fisk University

Fraternities celebrate with music and dancing during pledge competitions at Fisk University, Nashville, TN in 1969.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
20
Fisk University

Fraternity pledges for Omega Psi Phi practice their stepping routine in the Fisk University gymnasium in Nashville, Tennessee, 1969. 

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
21
Fisk University

Fraternity pledges for Omega Psi Phi practice their stepping routine in the Fisk University gymnasiun in Nashville, Tennessee in 1969. 

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
22
Fisk University

Pledges from the Zeta Phi Beta sorority gather together at the gymnasium to perform during one of their pledge rituals at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee in 1969. 

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
23
Hampton Institute (Hampton University)

Students in a laboratory at Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), Hampton, Virginia, USA, circa 1945. Like many other historically black universities, the institution was established shortly after the US Civil War.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Herbert/Frederic Lewis/Archive Photos/Getty Images
24
Hampton Institute (Hampton University)

Native and African American women studying the human respiratory system at Hampton Institute, Hampton, Va. in 1900.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
Buyenlarge/Getty Images
25
Hampton Institute (Hampton University)

A group portrait showing the members of the track and field team at Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) in Hampton, VA in 1930.

25 Old-School Photos of HBCU Students
The Abbott Sengstacke Family Papers/Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
TOPICS:  HBCU